What You Need to Know About Creative Arts Therapy

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We are eager to walk with you through whatever struggles you’re facing. Please provide some initial information to schedule an appointment. Due to the high volume of appointment requests, please allow up to one week for an email response from our team.

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Schedule an Appointment

Name: * This field is required

Date of Birth: *

This field is required

Email: * A valid email address is required

Phone: *

This field is required

What mental health issue(s) are you wanting to address? *

This field is required

How did you find Alabaster? * This field is required

What is your general availability? Please provide days/times. * This field is required

What form of payment will you be using (Self-pay, insurance)? If you will be using insurance please include your insurance provider. * This field is required

Are you involved in any current legal proceedings? If so, please explain your legal situation. *

Enter the text you see in the security image:

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It can take a while for anyone to feel safe and comfortable sharing the intimate details of past events, particularly if those events were traumatic. Creative arts therapy is a powerful tool to help children (and adults) begin to process painful experiences in their past in a non-threatening way.

How Creative Arts Therapy Works

Creative arts therapy provides a neutral space for children and adults to be able to regulate their emotions. Using two-dimensional or three-dimensional mediums, patients can create and reveal their beliefs or experiences without needing to articulate them using words. Sometimes, the content speaks for itself. Other times, color choices can provide insight into what a person is feeling. These selections, whether conscious or unconscious, are inlets for a therapist into the world of the mind.

It can be intimidating to sit down on a chair and face a stranger, especially when you’re there to unload some of the darkest or most challenging aspects of where you’ve been. Creativity disarms the fears and anxieties in the moment, allowing you to focus on the material in front of you. As you work with colored pencils or clay, your mind calms and your body relaxes. In this more relaxed state with your attention drawn to the creative work in front of you, many barriers of communication are removed.

It’s like taking a walk with a friend or riding in a car with someone: it’s far easier to have a conversation with someone when you are actively engaged in another activity. There isn’t as much pressure; you don’t have to make eye contact, and your body, which is usually tense and on high alert in a difficult conversation, is preoccupied with something else.

With art, you have an immediate way to communicate safely without needing to articulate what is going on inside you. Art therapy creates the kind of environment where you can feel comfortable and get to know your therapist. It’s a building ground for trust and relationship, which leads to deeper knowing and the hard work of mining into the traumas and challenges of our pasts.

The American Art Therapy Association provides an even more in-depth look at the work of art therapy in this video:

This is often the first step we take with our clients at Alabaster Creative Arts Therapy. We want to build relationships with you or your child, and we’ve found that creativity is a great first step to allow space for you to open up. If you’re interested in learning more, we invite you to schedule an appointment with one of our therapists.

Tags: art therapy, counseling, creative arts therapy, therapy

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Alabaster Creative Arts Therapy
439 North Market St.
Suite B
Wooster, OH 44691

PHONE: (330) 510-4892

HOURS:
Monday: 9 AM-7 PM
Tuesday: 9 AM-7 PM
Wednesday: 9 AM-7 PM
Thursday: 9 AM-7 PM
Friday: 9 AM-5 PM
Saturday: By appointment

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Alabaster Creative Arts Therapy, LLC, and its providers are not crisis providers.
If you are experiencing a crisis, please call: (800) 273-8255 or 911 for emergency service.